Scientists have established a link between student success and nutrition. The Parkway South junior representatives have taken it upon themselves to improve the quality of cafeteria food at lunch.

Students at Parkway South are unpleased with the options at lunch. Two years ago, in the year of 2020, South switched lunch companies. Fast forward to today, and some students view the lunches as much lower quality than before. 

The junior class representatives, Ethan Wood, Mazin Nadaf, and Sathvik Gandhi have taken action to make a change for our food options at lunch. They want to prove to South’s administration that students need better quality food for a number of reasons, including improving success in classes.

“South’s lunch food doesn’t help me think in classes,” junior David Smith said.

These plans are not as easy as 1, 2, 3. Wood and Nadaf elaborates on the steps it takes to begin the process. According to them, the first step is to identify the problems and concerns about the lunches. Students have come forward with examples moldy food in the lunchroom, small portions, etc. The second step is figuring out who they need to communicate with to begin changes. The representatives have been in close contact with primarily Assistant Principal Eric Wilhelm. The third step is to find opinions and come up with solutions. They want better and more food options and are also advocating for juniors to be eligible for lunch passes. Finally, the last step is to propose the idea to the administration and get it approved. 

He also said they have reached out to external resources, including Parkway’s new head chef, Robert G.

Besides the quality of the food, the representatives are also trying to create and change other policies at South, like making juniors eligible for lunch passes. Lunch passes at South are presently only accessible to seniors and mean you can leave school to get lunch elsewhere, and then return before your next class. They are also addressing the restroom policy, which doesn’t allow students to use the restroom during the last few minutes of lunch. 

To change these policies, the representatives prove they have been in contact with Dr. Wilhelm and others, like parkways chefs.

“These plans are already in progress,” Wood states. Wood’s first plan of action was establishing he could make a difference at lunch and disbanding the bathroom policy–students are now able to use the restroom the whole lunch.

Students of Parkway South are tired of consuming unappetizing food at lunch. According to junior Joseph Mallory, the lunch is “Gross and not worth the money in my opinion.”

Wood said the main goal they have for the school is to, “voice and articulate the concerns of the students and staff, and also positively represent our school and classmates as a whole.”